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Technical glitch hits monorail services yet again

Technical issues continue to affect commuter rides on Mumbai Monorail. On Saturday morning, the monorail services were suspended for two hours and commuters were unable to make end-to-end travel between Wadala Depot to Chembur. The system operator has been asked by the state authorities to properly carry out an inspection and follow Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for maintenance activity during night.

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Technical issues continue to affect commuter rides on Mumbai Monorail. On Saturday morning, the monorail services were suspended for two hours and commuters were unable to make end-to-end travel between Wadala Depot to Chembur. The system operator has been asked by the state authorities to properly carry out an inspection and follow Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for maintenance activity during night.

As usual, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), who owns the transportation system did not feel the need to alert Mumbaikars.

Sources informed dna that the finger plate (a metallic plate that stitches a joint of guideway beam) got dislocated thereby making the services unfit for operations. This happened at Mahul creek on south pier number 21.

Fortunately, the metallic plate that weighs over two kilograms did not fall on the ground below and remained on the guideway beam.

Monorail operations had to be suspended for over two hours. After a round of quick inspection, the services were run in a curtailed manner. And the services were being plied only on the single line which was not affected and that too from Chembur to Bharat Petroleum, for the rest of the day.

This is not the first instance of technical problems affecting the monorail system partly hampering the normal operations.

In the past, there have been three to four instances of the latest system getting interrupted.

MMRDA's clarification: Although the MMRDA officials have claimed that situation is under control now with a majority of the mechanical and spares issues getting resolved, the troubles forcing shutting of the operations is recurring.

"They are nothing but teething problems. In the beginning itself we had said that it is a pilot project. For everyone associated with this monorail system, it is a learning experience in India," said an MMRDA official. The official added that monorail operator — Scomi — has been asked not to give any portion of the structure a miss while carrying out the inspection work at night and also to diligently follow SOPs, so that such technical issues do not prop up again.

According to the official, what must have happened in this particular incident is that during the round of inspections not all the expansion joints and finger plates must have been reviewed.

All the maintenance activities are to be carried out only at night, and therefore, the system operator is forced to either suspend the services or curtail operations.

The only saving point for the authorities is low patronage to the system running between Chembur and Wadala Depot, otherwise, there would have been a hue and cry among the monorail commuters agaisnt consistent irregular services.
 

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